Do you send follow-up emails with these phrases?
“I just wanted to check in” or “I just want to touch-base”.
If you think you’re doing a great job, Appcues’ John Sherer thinks it’s a horrible email.
And we have to agree with him on this one.
Before you say “I’ve been doing this for years now and it’s working”, imagine being the recipient of your follow-up email.
Starting an email with the phrases “just checking in” or “just touching base” gives the impression that you are sending the email because you're just doing your job. It sounds cold and impersonal, right? You’re not making the impression that you are hopping in someone’s inbox for a specific reason.
What if there’s a better way of sending follow-up emails after a sale?
Emails to Send After the Purchase
In this blog post, you’ll learn that the best follow-up emails are chock full of value and are crafted with a well-thought-out strategy in place.
Work your way down below and get to know these different types of emails to promote customer loyalty and keep the brand love burnin'!
The Thank You Email
Aside from genuinely thanking your customer, a stellar Thank You email will help reinforce your customer's decision about the recent purchase. You can also use this opportunity to welcome your customer.
A solid Thank You email has the following components:
- A personalized thank you
- Customer service contact information
- Short note about refunds and guarantees
- Links to content that is relevant to the purchase
- Secondary CTA (call-to-action) opportunity ( link to a coupon, connect with you on social media, or check out your site’s blog)
Still not convinced about personalized Thank You emails? In a simple experiment, Hubspot’s product manager Magdalena Georgieva found out that simple, automated thank-you emails generated twice the engagement of one-off, dedicated marketing emails.
Product or Service Request Emails
Once you have the Thank You email taken cared of, send in the Service Survey email. A service survey email could take in the form of the following:
Survey
Send in a short form asking the customer to rate their experience with your product or service. Incorporate at least one open-ended question to help them explain their ratings as well as allow them to make suggestions.
Poll
Email a poll question after a sale if you want to ask your customer’s opinion about a new feature, add-on, or even a new product or service that you’ve been meaning to have.
HelpScout’s Gregory Ciotti recommends to keep your survey short and simple. Ciotti describes it as finding the shortest way to ask a question without losing its intent. If you’re using scales, he suggests you make your rating scales consistent across your poll or survey.
Review or Testimonial Request Emails
As part of your sale follow-up series, ask your customers about their experience with your brand. This could be in the form of a testimonial or link to a review site.
WordStream's Dan Shewan describes testimonials as the most powerful trust signals you can use on your website and across your marketing campaigns.
As part of a review or testimonial request, ask customers to share their experience on social media by adding links on your email. You can also incorporate links to review sites such as Yelp, Angie’s List, and Google Plus reviews.
Upgrade and/or Reorder Reminder Emails
If your product got itself a makeover, inform your loyal customers about the possibility of an upgrade via an upgrade reminder email.
On the other hand, a reorder reminder may be sent via email if your products are consumables. Personalize your email by making sure that you are recommending reorders of the product they are actually using. Don’t forget to add the CTA to your store or a link to checkout.
You can also go for the recommendation email. A personalized recommendation email may be in order for customers whose purchase habits are revealing a certain pattern, or if they filled out a form expressing their preferences. Take it from these brands who nailed personalization, including Spotify and Amazon.
A Sale is Just the Beginning
Many consider the sale as the end of the customer's journey. However, if you think of it as a beginning of a relationship, you're in the right path. Send those follow-up emails brimming with value (and a bit of personality!) and you'll end up with a loyal customer base.
Which brands do you think are doing a good job with their follow-up emails? Are you using the same tactics?
Kyjean Tomboc finished nursing school but found joy in plucking and stringing words to create value-driven content for brands in the health, life sciences, and lean startup niches. She loves everything strategic in creating content -- from CRO to SEO to SMM to UX (the Internet sure loves acronyms!). Her current obsessions include the human gut microbiome, A/B testing, and Benedict Cumberbatch. Kyjean is also a seasoned trekker.
